Olathe School District officials dodge questions on possible state law violation on student restroom usage

(The Sentinel) — Questions following multiple reports from parents who say Mission Trail Middle School officials in Olathe are allowing a biological girl to use the boys’ restroom and locker room have been met by silence from school officials.

If true, the inaction by USD 233 is an apparent violation of the Women’s Bill of Rights in SB 180 passed by the Kansas Legislature over Governor Laura Kelly’s veto in 2023.

Mission Trail allegedly allows a girl to use the boys restroom — *Logo courtesy of Mission Trail Middle School*

The summary of SB 180, now codified in K.S.A. 66-5601 through 66-5605 and K.S.A. 77-207 As regards this question of school restroom usage, the law states:

… despite any provision of state law to the contrary, distinctions between the sexes be considered substantially related to the important governmental objectives of protecting the health, safety, and privacy of individuals, with respect to the following areas:

Athletics;
Prisons or other detention facilities;
Domestic violence centers;
Rape crisis centers;
Locker rooms;
Restrooms; and
Other areas where biology, safety, or privacy are implicated that result in separate accommodations.

Additionally: the bill requires any school district, or public school, and any state agency, department, or office or political subdivision to identify each individual as either male or female at birth who is part of collected vital statistics data sets for the purpose of complying with anti-discrimination laws or gathering accurate public health, crime, economic, or other data.

We contacted Mission Trail Principal Scott McFarland for comment, who referred us to USD 233 Communication Specialist Erin Schulte. When no response from received from Schulte, we tried her boss, Communications Director Becky Grubaugh. Again, no response.

The Biden/Harris administration tried to force schools to allow students to use facilities of their choice with a rule that reinterprets Title IX to prevent discrimination on the basis of gender, even though courts have ruled that gender is not covered by Title IX. The new rule, scheduled to go into effect on August 1, has been stayed by the courts in Kansas and many other states pending the outcome of multiple lawsuits against the Biden/Harris administration.